The present invention relates to an apparatus for transporting single sheets of paper, plastic foil or the like of varying rectangular format, in particular from an automatic microfilm printer or copying machine to an automatic device for perforating the binding edge of each sheet and, as needed, folding the sheets. Such apparatus has: a flat sheet-advancement track on which are disposed transporting means for the single sheets, which act in a straight line; accessory means capable of being switched on and off for selectively rotating a single sheet being advanced and acting upon the single sheets when in their "on" state; and sensors, actuatable by each single sheet as it is transported, for recognizing the format of that sheet. Upon recognition of one sheet format, the sensors trigger the switching on of the accessory means.
Especially in industrial concerns, construction drawings and large-sized plans and the like are put onto microfilm. Microfilming makes it possible both to save space in library storage and to produce microfilm prints economically as needed, in various sheet formats and in the number of copies required for the operating divisions of the concern, such as workshops, purchase and storage of materials, cost assessment, bidding and so forth. The same applies to modern copying machines, with which copies of various formats can be made from one original, whether in the form of enlargements or in the form of reductions. In the following description, reference will be made only to apparatus for making prints from microfilm, without the invention being restricted to such an application.
Depending on how the automatic re-enlargement apparatus is programmed, this apparatus continuously provides the re-enlargements, produced in various rectangular formats from microfilm, to some desired, further automatic processing means. For instance, single sheets of large size are folded in accordion or zig-zag fashion down to A 4 (DIN) format as required for collating in file boxes, with an additional crosswise fold being effected if required. However, these re-enlargements must arrive at the intended automatic further processing apparatus with the correct edge--that is, the edge intended for a list of pieces to be worked or a designated plan--forward, so that the perforation of the binding edge mentioned above will be effected, possibly with reinforcements for the edges of the perforations, at this forward edge of the sheet. Following the folding of the sheet which may occur, the list or plan will then be located on the topmost part of the folded sheet in a stack and in any case on a corner of the sheet located away from the binding edge.
In contrast to single sheets to be folded into formats A 0 to A 3, where the binding-edge perforation is to be effected on the narrow edge of the sheet remote from the workpiece list, a sheet of A 4 format does not require folding; however, in this case the binding-edge perforation must be effected on its longer edge, remote from the workpiece list, so that for this reason the single sheet must arrive at the automatic apparatus referred to above with this longer edge forward.